From Picture Frames

It’s still hot, it’s still summer, but now that August has rolled around the kids’ vacation days are numbered as the start of a new school year looms on the horizon. A new school year means new pictures and art from your student and new pictures and art means new picture frames.

School photos are nice to keep because they show how much your child has grown since they started way back in kindergarten. If you have the wall space, a fun idea is to frame

Architect Natural

them in order to show that progression. What are good picture frames for this kind of project? A wood picture frame is always the way to go for your 8×10 school pictures. Nothing too fancy, something versatile that will enhance the pictures instead of detracting. I would suggest our Architect series. It’s a real wood picture frame that comes in a number of colors. It’s slim and attractive and has a nice homey feel to it.

But what about the kids’ art? It’s fun to see those early drawings where they’ve done a stick-person family portrait in front of a house made up of a square with

Colori Large Orange

a triangle on top. They may not ever get much further than that artistically or perhaps they do develop a talent and their art becomes amazing. Either way, you’ll want to preserve and display some of these pictures. For the early school years art pieces I would suggest a fun colorful series like our Colori. Colori comes in both a wide and a narrow profile and is available in bright vibrant colors like orange, red, yellow and blue. It’s available in standard sizes, typically 8.5×11 and 11×17 but goes all the way up to 24×36. As your child gets further along and their talent emerges, you might want to consider a more mature frame to hang their masterpiece with. The Executive is a great wood picture frame that comes in rich, warm colors like Library Mahogany

Executive Library mahogany

and Burgundy (there are 6 different colors). It’s a high end but inexpensive frame to proudly show off your student’s best artwork. It’s also a good frame at graduation time for diplomas and certificates.

Your kids’ school years go by surprisingly fast and with framing their photos and art, you’ll always have something to cherish and remind you of how special they are.

Posters are a great way to punch up any room and inject it with some of our own style and identity. Movie poster, music poster, art prints, there’s all kinds of choices you can make. But once you have your posters unrolled and in your house, what’s the best way to display it? There are as many different kinds of poster frames and framing options as there are kinds of posters. What’s the best one to hang your brand new Led Zeppelin or Resevoir Dogs poster? At Frameusa.com we have some great solutions to your poster frame need.

Basic Poster Frames

First, you need to know what kind of poster you’re hanging and how important it is to you. Is this just a simple 11×17 boy band poster for your niece’s birthday that she’ll outgrow in two years or so? Maybe you’re looking for a cheap picture frame, something that goes above and beyond just handing her a rolled poster to tape onto the wall, but that is inexpensive. We have three options that are meant for this situation. Our Corrugated Posterframe, Foamcore Posterframe and Hardboard Posterframe.

These three frames are our basic poster frames. They have four mylar frame sides with mitered corners that “slide” or “snap” to the backing and styrene to hold the poster frame together. You put your poster on the backing, put the styrene on top of them and slide your sides on. It’s very easy and quick. You can choose from three different backings as well, which are the corrugated cardboard, foamcore and hardboard. The cardboard is the most inexpensive option but not as durable or long lasting as the foamcore or hardboard (the hardboard material is masonite). These frames come in a variety of colors and sizes.

Deluxe Poster Frame

Maybe you’re not framing a poster for your niece though. Maybe you’re putting motivational posters in frames for your office. You need a large quantity of 24×36 posterframes to show off your inspirational images and they need to look nice but at a cheap picture frame price. For this kind of project I’d suggest our Deluxe poster frames. They come in 3 colors (Black, Gold and Silver) and all of our standard sizes. The frame rails are made from polystyrene with a slim, rounded profile so they have a sleek, professional look. The posters inside can be easily changed out and these frames will not hurt your budget.

Budget SaverSimply Poly

But you’re not giving gifts to a niece or hanging posters in your office. You’ve gotten yourself a vintage, limited edition Bob Marley poster. You still want a simple plastic poster frame but you want one that’s a little more physically substantial. For these pieces we recommend our Budget Saver or our Simply Poly.
These are both thicker moldings with a bit more heft and presence than the Deluxe or the basic Posterframes. The Budget Saver comes in black and cherry and has a gentle bevelled profile, whereas the Simply Poly comes in black and white and has a flat profile. These are ideal for your 24×36 movie posters and art prints. In fact the Simply Poly goes up to 27×41 for those hardcore movie fans out there who get the full size theater posters. Both of these are thick enough to use sawtooth hangers for hanging (unlike the Deluxe and basic Posterframes which have hanging tabs stamped into their backing).

So whatever kind of poster it is your framing–something somewhat transient that will soon be replaced or something you want on your living room wall for years–we have a poster frame to accomodate you at Frameusa.

In today’s blog we’re going to spotlight an artist that we at Frame USA/Posterservice have had the pleasure of working with: Marc Allante. His print “Achilles” is one of our most popular posters and anytime we get new art from him we’re always pleased and excited.

Marc was born in Hong Kong and is currently based there where he is represented by the Avenue Des Arts gallery. He has lived in Sydney and London as well and it’s this blend of eastern and western cultures that informs his unique vision.

A self taught artist, Marc creates his images by combining traditional Chinese inks with European watercolor and pen techniques. He has a distinct style, often incorporating a paint drip and spatter look. His subject matter is varied with animals and architecture comprising much of his most striking work. In particular he has a way of capturing the energy and joy of birds in flight. He also incorporates silhouettes to create romantic imagery like his popular “Two Step.”

He’s a versatile artist whose voice continues to change and develop in new and unexpected directions. Check him out at his website Marcallante.com to see his full portfolio and where he will be exhibiting. While you’re at it, follow him on Facebook and Twitter (@marcallanteart) .You can also come over to Posterservice.com and search “Marc Allante” or go to our Art Posters section to see the 24×36 posters we currently carry. If you are looking for art to put in picture framds that encompass beauty, color and joy, you’ve found it in Marc’s work.

The phrase, “Summer Vacation” packs a wallop of images, emotions and memories. You can almost smell the hot dogs cooking on the grill; hear the sound of a baseball hitting a bat and the roar of a crowd at the ballpark. You think back to running through the sprinkler on the lawn to cool off. You remember sticky ice cream melting onto your hand as you hurry to finish your cone. But if your family ever went s away from home during the summer months, that’s probably what you think of the most when you hear “Summer Vacation.”

Road trips to the grand canyon, umbrellas and loungers on the beach, poorly erected tents in the woods; the vacation could have many different faces but their was always a pattern to the whole affair . Sing-alongs in the car the first hour maybe. The license plate game, snacks and sodas. Everyone getting along. At some point the novelty of being out and about wore off and people settled back into their habits of getting on each others nerves. But always with love, and through it all, you enjoyed sharing the experience with each other. It didn’t matter if you bickered here or there, you grew closer with every little delight and disaster. And while all of this was going on, someone was snapping pictures.

Every family seems to have at least one photo bug. Before the digital age they would have a clunky old Polaroid or Kodak hung around their necks on a strap. Cajoling everyone to, “say cheese,” and click-click-clicking away at the shutter button. Afterwards when you got home they’d get their spools of film developed and meticulously sort them and put them into an album maybe, or make a collage. These moments, captured forever on a piece of photo paper, become treasured family heirlooms. The tradition of vacation photos is as strong as any holiday tradition a family observes. It’s a way to preserve those moments for future generations and for those whose memory has maybe gotten fuzzy. They’re important.

So when you want to frame your vacation pictures, a sense of style should be considered. These are not just vacation photos, these are the ones important enough to take out of the album and put on the wall. The frame you choose will impact the way the picture is viewed.

A flat fronted profile is always a good way to go. Sleek, and versatile, you can really use them in any decor, whether it’s modern, country or shabby chic. Our corporate series of frame is a great example of this.

But let’s say you want something with a little bit of pizazz. Nothing ostentatious but with a little bit of design interest. A slim frame with a rounded face and maybe one beveled channel. Our Classic series comes in Black, walnut and cherry and can give it that extra little bit of oomph you’re looking for.

Whatever you decide, hang your summer vacation photos with pride. Let them remind you of the smells of grilling and the sounds of baseball. Let them transport you to those moments where you felt wonder alongside annoyance and love.

With San Diego Comic-Con and the Major League Baseball All-Star-Game having both just wrapped up, it’s been a big couple of weeks for collectors of all kinds of memorabilia. Millions of dollars were spent, on posters, bobble heads, shirts, autographs, toys and items of every kind; all to be taken back home to be proudly displayed. A few of these may just be thrown here and there or shoved, forgotten on to bookshelves but serious collectors require serious displays. Frames, shadowboxes and wall shelves become the pillars of the monuments to their fandom.

The Walking Dead 4Item # PSA009739

Memorabilia is the common ground where comic book nerds and film geeks meet sports fans and music freaks. Collecting is a big business. In an increasingly digital age, people who are passionate about the things they love–the things that form part of their identity–want tangible examples that they can hold and touch. In a world where you can download any song, or image or movie or picture, it can be very satisfying to say, “I actually went to a place and bought this. I was with other people who love what I love and here’s a real souvenir of that.”

Depending on how much the items mean to the collector, the amount of money spent on memorabilia can go from a very small amount (one retailer has a vintage Princess Leia action figure for sale at $12.99) to what may seem unimaginable to a non-collector ($7.2 million for the original manuscript of Don McClean’s “American Pie” lyrics). When a collector spends that kind of money on something they want to preserve it and display it in the best way possible. There are nearly as many different kinds of displays for memorabilia as there are actual types and genres of collectibles. Some of these are ornate and expensive; huge, multi-tiered curio cabinets with non-glare, uv protected glass and humidity controls. Some may be hand carved wooden mantlepieces where a fan’s collection of the 1975 Cincinnati Reds baseball cards may sit, each one mounted to it’s own plaque. But after spending so much on the items, there are ways to display one’s collection without blowing out their bank account.

Frames and shadowboxes are great ways to show off your collectibles. For flat pieces like newspaper clippings, prints, posters, art and programs, wooden frames are great for hanging your piece. There are a lot of great frames at Frame USA that are perfect for this. Our Black and White series is a simple but elegant frame that will show off your piece without distracting from it.

But maybe what you’re trying to show off isn’t flat. Maybe you want your friends to ooh and ahh over your vintage 80’s original My Pet Monster doll. For 3 dimensional items, a Shadowbox is always a great way to show off collectibles that have a little more heft. We have three different shadowboxes that are perfect for this purpose. Our Shadowbox Elite is great for smaller items (action figures, lead painted figures, baseball card collections). Our Shadowbox Showcase has a bit more depth so your Lord of the Rings Mithril chainmail shirt and ring of power have room to breathe. And for your 12″ tall Tardis replica? Our 3.5″ deep Shadowbox Boxer is perfect. Sports fans need not feel left out. All of these shadowboxes are also great ways to display your jerseys, bobbleheads, game-balls and autographed items.

So show your collectibles with pride! Let everybody know that you’re a Dr. Who/Star Wars/Batman/Walking Dead/Avengers/Bengals/Metallica/Stanley Kubrick/Cavaliers/Disney fan. Frame up those pieces and let people know who you are.

There are so many sites and blogs out there dedicated to helping you decorate your first apartment or house. In fact when you do a quick google search for Decorating your first apartment you will get about 23,400,000 results to sift through.

After going through the first page of results I had an overwhelming realization that not many of those 23,400,000 results gave me something that was temporary. All of them talked about hanging frames, or screwing in mirrors or adding shelves. All of which are the perfect solutions for those that have purchased a house (we’re personally biased on the hanging frames part). However for those that are transitioning into their very first apartment, all of these tips are crap. When you’re renting a space you don’t have the ability to screw things into the walls, add shelves, hammer in nails or even sometimes paint your walls a fun color without the risk of forfeiting your security deposit.

So what is a new renter supposed to do to turn their rented Apartment into a home?

We’ve come up with some great ways to decorate an apartment that doesn’t require nails or screws.

one of the easiest ways to decorate your apartment is with fun furniture. A funky couch or chair can really spice up a living room. For those that aren’t into having such a big purchase be the focal point of the room. Try to use pillows or blankets as a way to add color. You can get pillows with sequins or lace or different colors the possibilities are endless.

Since we aren’t a full shop for decorating we know more about decorating with picture frames and art. The only problem is that what happens when you have a large piece of art— large frames take screws or nails.

But don’t worry you have some options, for one, if It is a frame that is not too terribly large you can purchase what we refer to as an easel mate.

The easel mate is perfect for the larger more manageable frames such as 11×14 and smaller that don’t normally come with an easel back. It screws into the back of the frame and turns that hanging frame into a table top frame or a shelf frame.

The other option if the piece of art is too large is to have an easel mate is to use poster mounts or mounting tape. This is a mountable adhesive that allows you to hang posters and art prints to just about any surface and have it easily remove.

The other option for the larger pieces is to hang it with a frame. If you are thinking how can i hang my art with a frame, didn’t you just say that large frames don’t work in apartments? You would be right, I did say that. This isn’t your normal type of frame. This frame is something called poster hangers.

These are plastic pieces that slide on to the top and bottom of the piece and sit flatly on the wall. These poster hangers typically come with metal saw tooth that you screw into the wall but for our particular purpose that won’t work. But these can also use the poster mounts or mounting tape as a way to add some pizzazz to a piece and still not leave a mark.

So use these tips and go forth and decorate your new home but first, tell us, What are some of your apartment decorating tips that don’t require screws or nails?

We weren’t kidding when we mentioned that we were introducing a whole bunch of new products. Just the past two months alone we have introduced our Frame an Album, The Noble Series, and The Cambridge Series. With all these new product additions we sure could use a little R&R. What better location than to relax and have the stress melt away than a beach!

Since most of us can’t actually escape to a private little island we thought we would at least bring on a frame that sets our dreams afloat.

Introducing the Beach White Series

This series is what any great beach getaway consists of, clean lines, pearlescent white finish and a choose your own adventure game. So we may have fibbed on that last part, but with the Beach White series you do have the option of choosing between a narrow profile and a wide profile. The narrow profile measures in at around 1 1/2″ wide where as the wide profile comes in at around 2 1/2″. Either route you choose will have you setting sail to your very own private island (without the outrageous price tag attached).

If you’re not too thrilled about having your friends mistake your home as a vacation home, don’t fret The Beach White series has a clean beveled edge that takes a modern relaxed twist on the typical beach style frame.

After being around this serene new series, we’ve almost convinced ourselves that we can hear the waves crashing on the rocks and the sun on our faces

If you’re looking for a picture frame to add relaxation and warmth to a room then set sail to paradise with Frame USA’s Beach White SeriesToday!

Your thoughts about Gold Picture Frames are dependent on your generation. The younger generation, those of you that are early 20’s to mid 30’s grew up seeing gold picture frames in our grandparents houses and churches and thus have labeled them as ‘outdated’ or ‘ostentatious’. As the time comes for this generation to begin decorating their own homes they chose a style that is completely opposite, opting for more shabby chic or modern decor. For the older generation, those that are late 30’s on, have seen the value in gold picture frames from the very beginning. This generation has and always will have the right view on gold picture frames, and it’s time for everyone to have this view!

Gold Picture Frames: Revamped

The color gold is such a complex color that it’s hard to come up with one specific value to describe it, each shade and tint of the color is unique. This complexity gives our company, as a picture frame manufacturer endless possibilities when it comes to providing gold picture frames—and we take advantage of every single one.

Not only are there numerous possibilities when it comes to the color of gold, but you also have the option of choosing a shiny finish or a matte finish.

These possibilities are the reason that gold picture frames no longer are outdated or ostentatious (unless of course you want them to be).

Frame USA offers everything from the traditional gold frames that everyone is used to seeing all the way to frames with the more muted end of the gold spectrum like our Cambridge Series.

When you purchase a gold frame from Frame USA you’re purchasing a frame that will go the distance, not fall into the trend category that will be considered out by the following week.

Whether you’re looking for a frame that will make you reminiscence about the good ole days or looking for a stylish frame to add some value to your decor, Frame USA has you covered with our great line of American Made Gold Picture Frames

So in the past two weeks we have introduced our Frame-an-Album Series and our Noble Series. I bet you weren’t expecting us to come back and introduce yet another new product series into our high quality american made picture frame line; but we enjoy keeping our customers on their toes! We are back again to introduce to you a product that is sure to be an A+ in everyone’s eyes.

Introducing the Cambridge Series

This series joins the metallic wood frame family with three different colors: Aged Gold, Gold and Silver. These colors are more muted then the other gold and silver frames that Frame USA has available. Which makes Cambridge the frame series to go with if you’re searching for a modern but still classic frame. The Cambridge series was inspired by the antiquity and the esteemed halls of academia. It is a 1 3/4 inches wide profile. Each frame features a unique inner edge that makes any piece stand out.

Like your teachers always told you, don’t judge a book by the cover, don’t judge this Series by it’s textured front. This moulding only appears to be intricately textured, it actually features a smooth consistent finish.

This new series is a surefire way to enrich the appearance of your framed photos or artwork. Add elegance and sophistication to your home, office or studio decor with Frame USA’s Cambridge SeriesToday!

We won’t ruin the surprise, but we will give you a hint, there’s more new products coming to Frame USA’s American Made Picture Frame line. Find all the information about them on our blog!

Barnwood Picture Frames

One of the most popular product that we have ever carried at Frame USA has been our Barnwood Series. This frame is fantastic made of reclaimed wood from actual barns. We had a hard time ever keeping any of it on our shelves. It was so popular that our manufacturer just couldn’t come up with the material that we need to make the frames. This series is currently out of stock until further notice which has caused some anger from our customers, and we hate making our customers angry!

So here is what we did, we added three new members of the Barnwood family to our line. We could never replace the original Barnwood series in the hearts of our company or our customers but we had to fill the void caused by the out of stock barnwood, and we think we did a pretty good job.

Let us know what you think of the brand new members of the barnwood series!

Out of the three new series, The Appalachian Barnwood Picture Frames most closely resembles the original barnwood color. This series has a natural rugged beauty unique to America’s heartland. This series like the original barnwood is effective in both modern homes as well as classic. The actual frame is a smooth profile that provides all the beauty of a barn without the splinters!

For those that have been a loyal customers for a couple of years you may be scratching your head and thinking “didn’t they already have a Farmhouse Barnwood series?” and you would be correct! Back by popular demand our new and improved Farmhouse Barnwood series! This series comes in a white and a charcoal color and feature a 2″ wide flat profile. They are inspired by the look and feel of reclaimed barns.

Rocky Mountain Barnwood

This series hasn’t quite hit the shelves yet but we’re too excited about this frame to not tell you all about it! If you are looking for a more pioneer feel to your home without traveling all the way back to covered wagons then our Rocky Mountain series is for you. Rocky Mountain has a distressed rough around the edges feel to it that resembles the look and feel of log cabins of the American Frontier. This series is made from Rocky Mountain Spruce Pine Fir. and has the texture that so many of our customers adored about the original barnwood series. Be on the look out for when this series hits the shelves because we’re confident it will be a fast seller!